Saturday, 23 July 2011

The Hour1x01 Episode 1Quite a good start, though it could do with getting on with things a bit more. This is where the 40-50 minutes of US series have an advantage: they'll tell the same story, but they'll tell it quicker.Much was made in the press of the series' similarities to Mad Men, mainly because it's set in approximately the same era, features men in suits, women being kept in their place, and everyone smoking all the time. The makers were right to say such comparisons were inaccurate -- downtrodden, brown British '50s journalism is a very different world to glossy, colourful American '60s advertising -- but I still think the series is trying to be Mad Men-ish. For one thing, Dominic West's character's story in this episode (he's a smooth ladies' man... who actually has a wife and, it would seem, a tricky home life) is straight out of Don Draper's introduction in Mad Men's first episode (s).Still, on the whole it has promise. Fingers crossed it realises it.[Watch it (again) in HD on iPlayer.]